It was 1996 and the beef industry had a problem.

For generations, beef cuts had been named and marketed according to the anatomical location on the carcass from where they were derived. For example, top blade steak, bottom blade steak, sirloin steak and round steak were all selections from which the customer had to choose when buying a steak.

The problem was, consumers didn’t understand the cut names. Only one in four shoppers understood that the anatomical name related to its origin on the carcass, which in turn denoted the tenderness level and how the product should be cooked. Consumers were cooking cuts the wrong way and were dissatisfied with the results. One in three shoppers said their lack of cooking knowledge prevented them from buying certain cuts of steaks and roasts. Consumers bought only a limited number of cuts (generally, only one kind of steak) and if this cut wasn’t in the counter, they didn’t buy beef. The implication for retailers was lost sales and poor margins on beef cuts that consumers were not familiar with, namely hip and chuck cuts.

Something needed to change, and Canada Beef led the charge. Focusing on satisfying the customer, a task force was formed and the result was a revolutionary new naming system for beef that put the cooking direction right in the name.

It was one of the most positive market initiatives in years.

Reaping the Benefits at Retail

Building on that development, Canada Beef launched the New Name Beef program. The program includes:

Revised nomenclature which incorporates the cooking method with the anatomical cut name,
On-pack cooking instructions, and,
Beef counters set up by cooking methods to simplify the shopping experience.

A recent consumer tracking study (NPD Group Canada Inc.) confirmed that retailers who properly implemented and executed all three elements of the program realized annual dollar volume increases of 17.7% and kilogram increases of 12.7%.

Canada Beef has developed all the Point of Sale materials retailers need to implement this program. Cooking instruction labels are now produced or distributed by most store supply companies. Contact a Canada Beef retail team member for more information.